The Path To Daemonhood

The splash of foetid red water underfoot had become something of a blessing, even if the stains were damn near impossible to get out of my boots.

We had just crossed the Seeping Wound on our way back to Haven, and it meant that we were officially back in safer territory. Safer, but not "safe", even by the standards of the Abyss. Things were tumultuous in the Abyss as of late, and we had more than the usual list of threats to worry about.

We've had multiple reports from the Wolf Pup scouts over the past couple of weeks, that the Breakers were active in the west of the Abyss, between the Ghostwood and the Dead Hollows. Their arrival had forced multiple nomadic groups to flee the area, and a couple of the Pup's outposts had been raided, though thankfully when they were unoccupied. This technically made the area around Haven safer for us, as the other groups had fled back southeast, since little was known about the western reaches of the Abyss.

Of course, that's simply because everyone who goes west usually ends up finding nothing but more forests, or ending up in Haven.

I don't really know why I came along, though.

I mean, I was told to, and I am an official member of the Expedition Team. But this was a hunt. Most of the work was done by Einar and the twins, they're the best archers we have, with Johnny tracking them down. The rest of us are just here to carry the bonehounds home. Speaking of…

"Johnny, could you put a little more effort into carrying your end of the bonehound? I feel like all the weight's on my end…" I grunt, shifting the uncomfortable heavy stick on my shoulder.

We were high on the victory of a successful bonehound hunt. We call them bonehounds, but in appearance they're somewhere between a wild hog and an oversized wolf. That explains the hound part, at least; the bone part is because of their preferred diet of bones. I think they look far more like a wild hog than a wolf.

Apparently, their meat bears a passing resemblance to pork, if you squint, hold your nose, and tell yourself it's pork. More importantly, they have a lot of meat on them, and we'd captured two fully-grown bonehounds. It'll take some work, but the kitchen will make sure it'll last. At this point, I'll take anything that isn't stringy jackhorn meat or old salted bloodbeast.

Rann and Rob are carrying one of the slain bonehounds tied to a long stake, while Johnny and I are carrying the other. I'm certain Rob could carry one on his own, but we're doing it in pairs to make it fair. I guess.

"I'm holdin' up my end just fine, Feathers. Not my fault you're shorter than me." Johnny shoots me a look over his shoulder, adjusting the stick on his end.

"Then why am I carrying it…? Einar's closer to your height than mine."

"Because he hunted it. Him and the twins did the hunting, we do the hauling." Rann calls back. "Besides. You're stronger in your shoulders than he is."

"I am?" Einar's not built like a brick wall like Rann or Rob are, but he's not exactly skinny. I find that hard to believe, until I feel a hand squeezing my free shoulder, and I look across at Arshiya as she silently gropes my upper back.

"Arshiya?" I raise an eyebrow at her.

"Mm. You've got lots of shoulder muscle, Marina. You're strong." She nods, giving me a thumbs up and a smile.

"What, did you squeeze Einar's shoulders to compare them, too?"

"She did." Einar bluntly cuts in with an answer.

"... Arshak, please teach your sister to ask before she starts touching people."

"Why is that my responsibility?!" he complains, drawing a few laughs from others.

The lighter mood is a welcome reprieve from the tension that persisted throughout this entire journey. Though we'd tracked the bonehounds southeast on the hunt, we were wary of running into any other groups out there. The entire hunt was carried out in near-silence. While the bonehounds were anything but silent, the squeals of wild animals weren't uncommon in the Abyss: damn near everything out here preys on everything else. Even the trees have a taste for blood. I've spent so long in Haven lately that I'd nearly forgotten how hostile the Abyss can be.

Though I soon got a reminder of what was the greatest danger in the Abyss, as Rann abruptly raised his hand for us to stop in our tracks and go silent.

He gave the signal for Johnny to move up to the front. Johnny looked back at the twins, who both quietly hurried over to take his end of the bonehound as he moved up. I saw him squat down to examine something on the ground: a track leading into the woods.

"... These ain't fresh. At least a day old, maybe two. Been no rain to wash away their tracks," he breaks the silence, his eyes fixed on a narrow path through the trees.

"How many? I count half a dozen." Rann asks.

"Yeah, that's about right. It's not the numbers I'm worried about though. These folks didn't even try to hide their tracks. Most of the smarter nomads can at least do that. Which means…" Johnny trails off, rubbing his chin in contemplation.

"They don't know how to hide their tracks, or they don't care to." Rann finishes.

"You mean… they could be someone like the Breakers?" Arshak asks, peering ahead. "I thought they were up near the Ghostwood! We're nowhere near that!"

"Eh, can't say for certain. They were definitely in a hurry, but…" Johnny draws a line with his finger, tracing the path of the tracks. "If they weren't Breakers, they're runnin' the wrong way."

"We need to get back to Haven." Rann orders, a tang of urgency in his voice. "Get back with Marina, Johnny. We're getting home as fast as we can."

"We don't need ta rush, Rann. These tracks ain't headed towards Haven either. We're due a report from the Pups tomorrow anyway. We'll see what they have to say about any more movement out here." Johnny waves off Rann's concern with a casual gesture, but I can tell he's trying to get him to calm down.

"The sooner we get back, the better. We only leave when we have to." Rann reiterates his point, and it sounds like my read of him was right on the mark.

"We'll get back in time." Einar calls from the back. "We're not in danger, Rann."

"Look, even Einar is tellin' ya it's no big deal. You trust your trackers to do their jobs, dontcha? Now, are we gonna stop arguin' and get movin', or what?" Johnny holds his hands out in exasperation.

"We'll move." Rann sighs in defeat, starting to move past Johnny with Rob in tow behind him. "Come on."

"Falian's brass balls…" Johnny grumbles under his breath, taking his end of the pole the bonehound is tied to.

The rest of the trek back to Haven is marked by an uncomfortable silence. It was obvious that this news of the Breakers had Rann on edge. It's not like arguments were uncommon between us, but Rann was usually the mediator, not the cause. It's enough of a change to worry all of us.

The way he spoke about them was like a conflict was inevitable, and he was preparing for it to arrive any day now. It was like he had a history with them, which didn't gel with the fact that according to others, he'd only ever encountered them once, over a decade ago. Whatever happened during that encounter, it left a deep mark on him that unnerved him to this day. He hadn't lost his cool, but he's been far more risk-adverse than he was before. He only agreed to this hunt because we had to, lest everyone revolt over the state of the meat in Haven.

We trust Rann's judgement. All of us do. But we know better than to follow him unquestioningly; that's not the environment he's fostered. He's always encouraged us to ask questions, and to not act until we knew as much as we could. He knows he's not perfect, and he's never acted as such. He trusts us to do our jobs, just as we trust him to lead us. It's rare to see anything get under his skin. He's kept a level head through far more immediate threats to both our safety and Haven's, yet now, he's unnerved by a distant threat on the horizon.

Fortunately, the mood lifted once we made it to Haven. Our successful hunt was the good news that Haven needed, and two plump bonehounds were quickly whisked away to the butcher's blocks to prepare a feast for the night.

Haven was in dire need of some good news, however, as the Wolf Pups had reported in one day early, bringing very bad news indeed.

"... How's the lad fairing?" Rann asks, looking over Tiff's shoulder.

A scouting party from the Wolf Pups had run into two dozen Breakers, just east of the Seeping Wound. The Pups had scattered in all directions, before regrouping at their outpost safely. Not all of them were okay, though. Magpie, a friend of Crow and Rabbit, was hit by a stray arrow square in the shin. How he made it back to the outpost on his own with an arrow embedded in his leg, none of them knew, but they brought him to Haven as quickly as they could.

"He's had a low fever since he got here, but he's safe now…" Tiff answers, gently wiping down the boy's forehead as she leans over his bed.

"How's the wound?" Rann moves to lean against the wall, his worried gaze fixed on the pale boy in the bed beside him.

"He suffered a minor bone fracture. If they hadn't kept the arrow in his leg until they got here, he'd likely have bled out. I cleaned it as best I could, so now it's just watching, waiting, hoping… it doesn't get infected." Tiff sighs softly.

I came up with Rann to one of the spare rooms in Tiff's house to check on Magpie. Crow and Rabbit had remained by his side the moment he entered Haven, and Hound, their other friend who was with the group that encountered the Breakers, had been silently watching over him as well.

"Magpie will be okay." Rabbit nods affirmatively, clasping Magpie's shivering hand. "Miss Tiffany is a good healer. She won't let Magpie attain any negative status effects."

"Kid's lucky the arrow was little more than a sharpened stick. A real arrowhead would have done far worse." Rann mutters. He's been wearing a dark scowl ever since he got the news of Magpie's injury.

"Their equipment was no better than ours. But they had numbers. And surprise." A gruff, harsh voice speaks up, and it takes me a moment to remember that's Hound's voice.

"How did they get you by surprise? Magpie's the sneakiest person in the Red Wolves. There's no way the Breakers of all people snuck up on you!" Crow asks, looking back at Hound.

"They didn't. They stumbled straight into us in the middle of the night. We didn't post sentries, and that's what we got for it." Hound grunts. "It's just luck that none of us died."

"Where did you encounter them? If you knew where they were concentrated, why didn't you post sentries?" Rann asks, glancing over at Hound.

"We knew where they were. The group that we encountered were nowhere near there." Hound grimaces. "They spread out all over the west. Nowhere's safe."

"Explains the tracks we encountered west of the Wound…" Rann mumbles, rubbing his chin.

"They're nowhere near Haven, Rann." Tiff smiles. "We've got our own brave Wolves looking out for us. Those tracks were still far outside the areas they forage in."

"We're keeping to our promise, Rann." Crow says, standing up and facing Rann, despite the fact that he barely comes up past Rann's waist. "We won't put ourselves in danger. If we see anything, anything that looks like it was done by other humans, we'll come straight back and tell you."

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Rann raises an eyebrow. "I recall your promise was that you'd only be foraging. The steady stream of dead jackhorns you've brought back says otherwise." He retorts, crossing his arms as he looks down at Crow.

"W-We can't call ourselves Wolves if we can't handle an oversized rabbit!" Crow shouts back, only to realise his kneejerk response gave away the fact that they haven't exactly followed their promise.

"Well, their promise was to not go after dangerous animals. Jackhorns are some of the least dangerous animals in the Abyss." Tiff pats Crow's shoulder. "Though, we never thought that "dangerous animals" would end up including other people."

"Just because they're the least dangerous doesn't mean they're safe…" Rann sighs, but his expression lightens. "Hasn't Johnny told you kids about the scars he got from a jackhorn?"

"Johnny has scars from fighting a jackhorn?" Rabbit asks, tilting her head to one side.

"I wouldn't call it a fight. It's more that he sat on one." Rann grins.

"How did he sit on a jackhorn? They're not exactly small." Yeah, they may look like a rabbit with antlers, but they grow as big as a medium-sized dog.

"Ask Johnny. I'm sure he'll be more than happy to share that story." Rann shrugs with that same grin.

"I doubt that." I squint at Rann.

"Alright, everyone." Tiff says, standing and clearing her throat. "Magpie needs to rest. He'll be all better in a few days."

With some reluctance, we all cleared out of the room. Tiff assured us that Magpie would be okay, though I could tell she was trying to assure herself as well, after what happened with Jorm. Magpie, thankfully, wasn't in nearly as bad a state as Jorm was. He was injured, but the Wolf Pups got him to safety, and Tiff's care is second to none in Haven.

Rann and I headed straight for the Chief's residence afterwards. The scouting party that Magpie and Hound were a part of was led by Bear, one of the four Red Wolves, and they accompanied the rest of the group to Haven in order to ensure Magpie was looked after. Now that the situation with Magpie was sorted, Bear had something to discuss with Haven's leadership, as we found them waiting alongside the Chief on the first floor of her library.

"... I see. So the situation in the Capital has grown untenable." The Chief nods, her hands clasped in her lap as she leans back in her chair.

"We had no issue running circles around the Keepsguard before. They blindly stumble into every trap we lay for them. We don't know how or why they're suddenly so close to the Capital's gates." Bear solemnly explains from behind their mask.

"When did this change happen?" Rann asks, leaning against the fireplace. "From your words, it's like they figured out where you were overnight."

"Nine days ago. We spotted them and laid false tracks to the south, yet they headed west in a straight line to the Capital before suddenly turning back again. Five days ago, we found them elsewhere in the Hollows, and the same thing happened. We never led them in the same direction twice, yet they knew exactly where to go two times in a row." Bear's head sinks. "We've changed nothing, and they never saw through our misdirection before. I don't understand how they immediately knew where to find us."

"No one was captured? They didn't interrogate anyone like they did with Crow?" The Chief asks, her brow furrowed.

"They have only ever spotted us a handful of times, and that was always by intent to lead them astray. None of our Wolves have been caught." Bear sighs. "I was going to inform you of this tomorrow, but the Breakers forced our hand. I had hoped you might know how they caught on to us."

"Their leader might have some form of magical detection trinket that led to him capturing Crow. That's all we know of them. We… recruited one of them not long ago, and even he doesn't know how they would have caught Crow, or how they're getting close to finding your base." Rann glances down at the dim fire as he talks.

"You… recruited a Keepsguard?" Bear repeats, surprised.

"He turned up at our gates unannounced a few weeks back. We don't just turn people away, so he's staying with us now. It seems he grew sick of combing through the Hollows to find you, so he abandoned the Keepsguard and fled to us. Not that it worked out for him as he'd hoped, but we appreciate the labour he provides." The Chief explains nonchalantly.

"We have two, actually. They can't stand each other, so we keep them in line by threatening to put them in the same room as each other." Rann chuckles.

"Hmm… so that makes four less Keepsguard." Bear brings their hand to their chin in contemplation.

"Four? What happened to the other three, did the trees eat them?" Rann asks with a cocked eyebrow.

"Yes." Bear turns their expressionless mask to face Rann. "The Fool's Gums appreciate the meals. Though they spit out the armour when they're done with them."

"Three Keepsguard were eaten by Fool's Gums?" The Chief blinks, slightly perturbed.

"And the trees just spat out their armour all chewed up?" Rann continues for the Chief.

"The armour was perfectly intact. We tried to recover some pieces, but the Keepsguard always knew exactly where to find their lost armour, so we decided against taking any back to the Capital, lest it lead them straight to us." Bear explains.

"... Are you certain no one took any of the Keepsguards' armour with them? That would seem the logical explanation for their sudden knowledge of your location." The Chief asks.

"It would be logical, if that were the case. The last time a Keepsguard fell afoul of a Fool's Gum was three weeks ago, and they didn't give up their search once. It was only recently that they suddenly seemed to know where to find us." Bear sighs deeply, making a slight whistling noise through the nose holes on their mask.

"Well. You've explained your predicament. What do you plan to do about it?" The Chief leans back in her chair, crossing her arms as she awaits Bear's answer.

"We plan to abandon the Capital. We'll relocate our active members to the outposts around the Abyss, rotating between them so several are active at any one time. Our youngest ones will go to the safety of Haven, along with… if we may…" Bear pauses, taking a deep breath. "The Wolf Queen. We believe she will be safest within Haven."

"I thought so." The Chief nods, sighing softly. "I had hoped it wouldn't come so soon, but we'll just have to work with it."

"I am aware this was discussed before with Her Majesty. I apologise that this has had to happen so soon, but it is unfortunately how the situation has developed. I knew, as our numbers grew, the Capital would no longer be able to sustain us all. I just did not think it would happen so soon." Bear nods solemnly, sinking slightly into their chair.

"This will still put her in danger. Either the Keepsguard finds the Capital, or they finally give up their hunt and come back knocking at our gates. She'll be within their reach no matter what." Rann speaks up.

"We know. But at this point, Haven will be safer than where she is now. You have well-armed warriors, ample supplies, and our trust. Though… I should bring up our Queen's… idea… on how she wishes to handle the evacuation of the Capital." Bear suddenly sounds much less confident about this evacuation the minute they bring up the notion of Arza's "idea."

"Judging by your tone, I take it there was some disagreement about your Queen's idea on the evacuation to Haven." The Chief leans forward, resting her chin on her hands.

"Her idea to ensure the safety of the youngest members of our group… is to be personally escorted from the Capital to Haven, to serve as a distraction for the Keepsguard or the Breakers if either group discovers us. Those still in the Capital will be divided up into four groups, each led by a Red Wolf, and sent in separate directions to ensure they all safely arrive in Haven, carrying what they can." I can hear the frown in Bear's otherwise neutral voice. "She seeks to endanger herself, to ensure the children's safety."

"Hmm." Rann chuckles. "Sounds like something our leader would do."

"It is certainly dangerous. I can see why she'd request our Expedition Team to escort her, as it is the only way that plan would work." The Chief sighs, choosing not to respond to Rann's provocation, even if the slight twitch of her eyebrow gives away her annoyance.

"Well then? If you're so unhappy with her idea, what plan do the Red Wolves prefer?" Rann asks.

"We…" Bear looks away from us all, their body stiff. "We spent more time disagreeing with her idea rather than coming up with an idea of our own. The situation is dire, and we do wish to evacuate sooner rather than later. It is just… our Queen was adamant. The children could hide easily to avoid detection, whereas she would have a harder time. She felt travelling with one of the four groups would put them in too much danger, since she is aware it is her that the Keepsguard are after."

"Should we take this as a formal request for the services of the Expedition Team to escort the Wolf Queen to Haven, then?" The Chief asks, gesturing openly to Bear.

Bear falls silent, their mask downturned and their hands clasped in their lap. It's a difficult position they're in, and Bear is representing the Wolf Pups on their own. It doesn't take long for them to give an answer, though.

"Yes. Though my peers may object to me making this decision on my own, they are not here right now. To ensure as many of us make it to Haven safely, I see no other option but to go ahead with our Queen's plan." Bear nods, their mask locking eyes with the Chief, before faltering slightly and adding, "... If Haven's leadership agrees to it."

"Rann?" The Chief looks over at him, saying nothing more.

"We'll have an answer in the morning. There's a few things we'll need to discuss, but… don't worry, kid. We won't just abandon you when you need us." Rann nods and smiles at Bear, who visibly relaxes after holding all that tension for so long.

"Thank you, truly. As for the contents in the Capital we cannot carry with us, our Queen plans to, er… summon them to Haven once all is done and everyone has safely arrived. She intends to leave nothing behind, be it a book, a silk dress, or a marble column." Bear nods profusely in thanks.

The Chief and I exchange a look as we recall the veritable underground palace that Arza had literally summoned from one of her many homes to make herself more comfortable. The fact that Bear specified she wouldn't even leave a marble column behind, of which her home had several, is… an issue we will have to handle at a later date. Right now, the goal is getting her, along with all the Wolf Pups too young to fend for themselves safely to Haven.

"Don't thank us until we've got her here safely. You should go round up the Pups that came with you; it's just about dinner time." Rann nods towards the stairs, and Bear stands, nods once more in thanks, and quickly departs.

"... Rann." The Chief says, crossing her arms.

"Yes, I'm not happy about it, Mia. It's a dangerous plan. And for the life of me, I can't think of a better one." Rann sighs, slumping against the wall slightly.

"Then why did you agree to it?" She asks, pushing him on the point.

"Because you don't want to abandon them either." He shoots a look back at her, frowning. "Don't make this my fault."

"I'm not. I'm simply worried about sending you out on a dangerous mission like this. I am well aware of how you've been feeling of late in regards to what's going on in our end of the Abyss." She sighs, leaning forwards. "Do you want to do this? Or did you tell Bear they'd have an answer in the morning so we could work out an alternate plan?"

"No matter what we do, if we try to get her to Haven now, we risk a run-in with the Keepsguard and the Breakers. But if we do nothing, there's a good chance the Keepsguard will find the Capital, ransack it, and do… gods knows what to those kids, along with whatever they think capturing Arza will get them. The way I see it, we don't have a choice in what we have to do." Rann's agitated.

"No, we don't." The Chief glances down at the last flickering embers in the fireplace. "But it wouldn't be like us to just leave them to their fate."

"Just give the order, Mia. I don't have to like them to follow them." Rann walks over to the Chief's side, patting her shoulder.

"That's hardly reassuring." She frowns up at him, touching his hand on her shoulder.

"Just because I'm not happy about it doesn't mean I won't do it. This is exactly what we've been training to be ready for. We know the route to the Capital, we'll get Arza, and we'll get straight back. If anything gets in our way, we'll deal with it. We have our own tricks to rely on." Rann squeezes her shoulder in an effort to reassure her.

"By tricks, you mean Marina." She's unconvinced.

"Not just her. We could hardly call ourselves veterans if our only trick was her pulling her wings out." He frowns back at her.

"Am I included in this conversation now?" I ask, seeing which one I get a rise out of.

"You chose to be a wallflower, Marina." The Chief just frowns at me. They're both frowning at me. Have I interrupted something?

"I'm not a council member! I just follow either of you around and do whatever you say! Isn't that my whole job?"

"You do far more than that, Marina." She sighs, dismissing my question.

"Does she?" Rann asks, raising it again.

"Rann!" She retorts, drawing a laugh from him.

"I mean, I could fly her out of there, at least part of the way. I doubt she's that heavy."

"I'd rather you not be carrying anyone like that without a reasonable amount of practice. I thought you were tired of all this practice, practice, practice, weren't you, Marina?" The Chief asks, tilting her head at me and giving me a glare.

"... I would like a break from it, yes." I shrink back.

"I thought so." She smiles.

"If we're in agreement, then I did mention it's dinner time." Rann says, stretching his arms and heading for the stairs. "Hopefully the kitchen turned those bonehounds into something edible."

"Whatever they do with it, it'll be a welcome reprieve from jackhorn and salted bloodbeast. Hopefully it'll be a little less… gamey." The Chief sighs, rising to her feet.

Rann stops, and just gives the Chief a look. "Last time we had bonehound meat, you complained about it being too gamey."

"I'll just take anything that isn't jackhorn or bloodbeast at this point!" The Chief huffs annoyedly, pushing past Rann and stomping down the stairs.

I join the two of them for dinner afterwards, assuming we'll be setting out to essentially rescue Arza within a few days. It turns out, while it does taste vaguely reminiscent of pork, bonehound meat is indeed very gamey. Filling, but gamey. About as gamey as jackhorn or salted bloodbeast. So, pretty much the same in the end. Most importantly, though, it's fresh, and that's good enough for me.

The Chief just ate her gamey meal in annoyed silence, while Rann grinned at her the whole time.